Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 40913 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-08671

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 May 2022
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 10 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take in to ensure that workers in Green Freeports in Scotland will have access to trade unions with collective bargaining rights.

Question reference: S6O-01250

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it has explored the possibility of creating apps for parliamentary functions.

Question reference: S6O-01247

Asked by: Natalie Don-Innes, MSP for Renfrewshire North and West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will provide an update on the reopening of the Scottish Parliament crèche.

Question reference: S6O-01214

Asked by: Jim Fairlie, MSP for Perthshire South and Kinross-shire, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what steps it is taking to ensure the availability of Scottish produce on the menu in the Scottish Parliament.

Question reference: S6O-01249

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body when it last reviewed the requirements for members to access legal services funded through the Members Expenses Scheme in order to ascertain whether the current criteria are fit for purpose.

Question reference: S6O-01248

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, as an employer located in the zone, how it will help to meet the objectives of the Edinburgh Low Emission Zone.

Question reference: S6W-08827

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 9 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how much additional funding it assigned to NHS Ayrshire and Arran to help prevent drug-related deaths in 2021-22.

Please find the requested information in the following tables.

Table 1: NHS Board Baseline funding for Alcohol and Drug Services ; Ayrshire and Arran.

NHS Board	2021-22 Allocation
Ayrshire & Arran	£3,715,311

Additional Funding

In 2021-22 NHS Ayrshire & Arran received a further £3,397,782.20 above the baseline funding to support their Alcohol and Drug services and other projects. This was allocated directly to the ADP’s and Health Boards and also through the Corra Foundation. A full breakdown is below.

Table 2: Funding committed to Alcohol and Drug Services in Ayrshire and Arran Health Board

Funding stream	2021-22 Allocation
Buvidal	£564,770
Outreach allocation	£221,257
Near-fatal overdose pathways allocation	£221,257
Lived and living experience panels/forums allocation	£36,878
Programme for Government	£1,254,453
Drug Deaths Taskforce Funding	£216,641
Total	£2,515,263

Table 3: Funding delivered to projects in Ayrshire and Arran by the Corra Foundation 2021-22

Organisation Name	Fund	Local Authority (primary)	Amount Awarded 2021-22
Ayrshire Justice Services Partnership - Drug Treatment & Testing Order Service	Improvement Fund	North Ayrshire	£55,416.00
Ayrshire Justice Services Partnership - Drug Treatment & Testing Order Service	Improvement Fund	North Ayrshire	£53,856.00
Blue Triangle Housing Association Ltd	Improvement Fund	South Ayrshire	£42,914.00
Blue Triangle Housing Association Ltd	Improvement Fund	South Ayrshire	£51,152.00
Broken Chains	Grassroots Fund	South Ayrshire	£27,600.00
Children 1st	Children and Families Fund	North Ayrshire	£94,462.00
East Ayrshire Advocacy Services (EAAS)	Grassroots Fund	East Ayrshire	£24,300.00
East Ayrshire Churches Homelessness Action	Grassroots Fund	East Ayrshire	£15,830.00
East Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership	Children and Families Fund	East Ayrshire	£100,000.00
Freedom Fighters	Local Support Fund	North Ayrshire	£50,000.00
Impact Arts Projects	Children and Families Fund	North Ayrshire	£83,633.00
North Ayrshire Health & Social Care Partnership	Improvement Fund	North Ayrshire	£49,147.00
Occupational Therapy North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership	Improvement Fund	North Ayrshire	£21,000.00
onside ayrshire cic	Grassroots Fund	North Ayrshire	£26,380.00
Patchwork Recovery Community	Grassroots Fund	East Ayrshire	£20,000.00
Recovery Ayr	Local Support Fund	South Ayrshire	£33,500.00
Recovery Ayr	Grassroots Fund	South Ayrshire	£38,000.00
Recovery Enterprises Scotland	Grassroots Fund	East Ayrshire	£46,288.00
Vineburgh Community Association	Local Support Fund	North Ayrshire	£49,041.20
Total			£882,519.20

Question reference: S6W-08842

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 9 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update regarding the proposals to allow Ukrainian refugees settling in Scotland access to study at Scottish universities free of charge, with access to living cost support.

Ukrainians who arrive in Scotland and wish to undertake a course of study in Further or Higher Education will be entitled to home tuition fee status, free tuition and living cost support for the duration of their studies. This entitlement has been enshrined in the new student support regulations which were laid before the Scottish Parliament on 6 May 2022 and come into force on 1 August, being the start of the 2022- 23 Academic Year.

In addition, the Scottish Government also announced on 14 April, the creation of a new £1 million International Students’ Emergency Fund for international students who were facing financial hardship as a result of a significant change of circumstances.

Ukrainian students who have previously chosen to study at a college or university in Scotland and are facing financial hardship as a result of the Russian invasion will be eligible to apply to their college or university for support.

Question reference: S6W-08843

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 9 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government when the next monthly recorded crime in Scotland statistics are due for publication.

When the monthly recorded crime in Scotland statistics were last published in April, they highlighted to users that these official statistics would be replaced with a quarterly release of National Statistics, which will present the latest rolling 12-month period. As part of the transition to a quarterly release schedule, and to ensure the publication of data in as timely a manner as possible, the release of the annual National Statistics publication for 2021-22 is being brought forward from September to 28 June.

These and other changes to the production of the recorded crime statistics are a matter for independent statisticians and the Scottish Crime Recording Board, not Ministers. They were approved by the Board following a public consultation of users. The Board’s remit includes ensuring the production of crime statistics is undertaken in a manner consistent with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. An associated report on responses to the consultation and the resulting changes was published on 24 March ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/consultation-future-recorded-crime-police-activity-statistics-summary-responses-discussion-next-steps/ ).

Question reference: S6W-08809

Asked by: Michael Marra, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 30 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason no maximum bidding price has been stipulated within the awards process for floating offshore wind projects looking to progress through the Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) process, in light of a maximum bidding price being stipulated in the commercial-scale ScotWind leasing round.

It is for Crown Estate Scotland, As managers of Crown assets in Scotland, to set seabed leasing fees.

The INTOG leasing round, due to be launched summer 2022, is a ‘first of its kind’ and there is no direct precedent to consider when finalising the design of the leasing arrangements. The objectives for INTOG (stimulating innovation and decarbonising oil & gas) are different from those of other offshore leasing rounds and as a result some key features of INTOG, including pricing, are also different.

Due to the specific nature of the projects, the novel commercial models, and the potential risks relating to such a new type of project, Crown Estate Scotland want to give the opportunity for the market to set the appropriate price given that this is a new and untested landscape.

The ScotWind price cap was designed to ensure that projects competing for limited Plan Options were viable in the long-term, would maximise supply chain opportunities and incentivise floating wind projects, that are ideal for Scotland's deeper waters but comparatively more expensive.